An Edmonton judge has delayed passing a two-year sentence for a week so that a young father convicted of manslaughter can spend time with his child before being imprisoned.

On Friday Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Beverly Browne intended to sentence Kyle Ashton to two years in prison for manslaughter after convicting him in the death of Raad Hamza, but delayed passing her sentence at Ashton’s request.

Ashton, 22, was found guilty of manslaughter after a trial, during which court heard evidence that he threw a punch so hard that it broke bones in Hamza’s face and knocked him to the ground.

The two men had been acquaintances for years and were both drinking at The Billiard Club near Whyte Avenue and 105 Street in the hours before the Dec. 20, 2014, killing.

After exiting the bar, the men went off alone. During the trial, Ashton testified Hamza was angry with him and struck him in the throat before Ashton punched him.

Ashton fled the scene, leaving Hamza lying injured on the ground. He turned himself into police days later.

Browne ruled that she believed Ashton’s evidence that Hamza was agitated and that Ashton was trying to calm him down, but found there was no justification for the punch. She said there was no evidence the hit was in self defence or was provoked.

Crown prosecutor John Watson had argued for a sentence of three to three-and-a-half years, while defence lawyer Ashok Gill asked Browne to sentence his client to 12 to 15 months in jail.

Outside the courthouse Hamza’s sister Sarah and mother struggled to accept the length of sentence.

“I want someone to tell me if it is fair or not. Seriously. Maybe because we are not from here, we don’t know the law here. But if you think about it? It’s not fair,” Sarah Hamza said.

The family moved to Canada from Iraq after the death of Hamza’s older brother. His sister said after what happened, the grieving mother wants to return to Iraq.

But the family won’t go back, she said, because Hamza is buried here and they cannot leave him.

“I have to go see him every day,” she said.

Before detailing her decision on sentencing, Browne read from letters of support that had been submitted on Ashton’s behalf. In one letter, his adopted mother wrote about Ashton’s turbulent childhood and said she sought guardianship of him after discovering him living in a neighbourhood park when he was 12 years old.

Ashton, who was released on bail shortly after his arrest, will return to court to have his sentence officially passed on June 9.